Bentley Pharmaceuticals Licenses New Patent for Treating Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome From Dartmouth College for Its Drug Delivery Program.

Business Editors/Health & Medical Writers

NORTH HAMPTON, N.H.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 1, 2000

Bentley Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AMEX:BNT), a drug delivery company with a commercial presence in Europe, announced today that it has signed a license with Dartmouth College obtaining exclusive rights to a patent covering novel use of androgen therapy for treating fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. The license contemplates combining androgens with Bentley's patented CPE-215 delivery technology to develop treatment for these conditions. Dartmouth scientists will be working closely with the Bentley staff on these programs. The agreement requires Bentley to pay certain royalties and other payments for this license, although the specific terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The Dartmouth patent was issued in August 1999 and covers the use of a variety of androgenic steroids, including testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), and other compounds useful in the treatment of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

James R. Murphy, Chairman and CEO, commented, "We are excited to be working so closely with one of America's most respected institutions and combining our technology with Dartmouth to develop these groundbreaking therapies. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is quite prevalent in the United States and is recognized by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Social Security Agency as a serious disabling disease. The manifestations of CFS are unrelenting exhaustion, muscle pain, cognitive disorientation, and a variety of physical or psychological symptoms. CFS has not received a high degree of publicity since it is often not properly diagnosed and there is a lack of effective therapies. A study by DePaul University estimates that as many as 800,000 people suffer from this condition and it is about three times more common in women than in men. For purposes of putting CFS into perspective, it is more than four times as common as HIV in women."

Murphy continued, "According to the National Census Bureau of statistics, Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) is another prevalent affliction with approximately 15,000 to 20,000 new cases reported per year. FMS is a syndrome primarily affecting women in their late 40's or older who display symptoms of muscle pain, fatigue, chronic headache, and sleeplessness and has been estimated to strike as much as 5 percent of peri/postmenopausal women. A preliminary study conducted by Dartmouth scientists indicates that FMS patients demonstrated improved muscle function, energy levels, and restorative sleep in response to this therapy. With the exception of FMS, other complications associated with menopause have been successfully treated with hormonal steroids such as estrogen and progesterone, but now there appears to be hope for controlling FMS by delivering androgens."

Bentley Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a drug delivery company focused upon improving the absorption of a wide range of drugs and peptides through proprietary drug delivery technologies which it intends to commercialize in the U.S. and other major markets by licensing to other pharmaceutical companies. Bentley also manufactures and commercializes branded and generic products in Europe for the treatment of cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, neurological and infectious diseases through its subsidiaries Laboratorios Belmac S.A. and Laboratorios Davur S.L.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The statements which are not historical facts contained in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve certain risks and uncertainties including but not limited to risks associated with the uncertainty of future financial results, additional financing requirements, the ability to find effective market distribution channels, development of new products, regulatory approval processes, the impact of competitive products or pricing, unpredictability of patent protection, technological changes, the effect of economic conditions and other uncertainties detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Copies of the Company's press releases and other information may be obtained through Bentley's web site at www.bentleypharm.com.